Crystal Ball (RAH)
:Crystal Ball is a Cobra character from the A Real American Hero series. Bizarre, strange and uncomfortable to be around with. These are what best describes Crystal Ball. He may not be genetically or surgically enhanced but he has managed to unsettle his Cobra cohorts by his mad behavior and tales of European mysticism. He has also many claims that seem to give credence to his "mystical" powers of hypnotizing with a minimum of effort and even appears to be able to read minds. He is reputed to be the love child of a Romanian man with psychic powers and an American woman from Bangor, Maine. The man was said to be the seventh son of his family and when Crystal Ball was born to the woman, he was the seventh son she bore in her lifetime. Coincidence or bizarre fate? Fiction Comics A Real American Hero continuity Marvel Comics continuity Crystal Ball assists Cobra in a failed attempt to kidnap the President of United States from a baseball game. His skills allow them to pass through the Joe-provided security with minimal violence. His hypnosis of various people is undone by Cover Girl. (Ladies' Day) Devil's Due Comics continuity In the Devil's Due G.I. Joe series, Crystal Ball spends some time masquerading as Dr. Scott Stevens, who is a therapist working with `General Philip Rey. He eventually reveals that General Rey is a clone of Serpentor, and is part of a larger conspiracy to interject General Rey into the G.I. Joe team. Crystal Ball uses post-hypnotic phrases to unlock Rey's mind and turn him into a fully functioning Cobra agent. But the plan backfires, and with Duke's help, General Rey is able to combat his initial programming and break free from Crystal Ball's control. Crystal Ball is then taken into G.I. Joe custody. (...All the King's Men) He later appears working with the Night Creeper Leader, whose business conflicts with the ninja's efforts.(Storm Shadow 1) Crystal Ball also appears in a dream sequence where he has captured Shipwreck, who he wants to force to reveal all of G.I. Joe's secrets, but the sailor is saved by Polly leading the P.E.T.S. (Primal Emergency Tactical Squad).(Special Missions: Manhattan) Action Force (British) Comics continuity Write up Ballantine books continuity Toys Trivia *Crystal Ball is almost universally considered the most disliked figure. Fans hate this guy. *Was the "pegwarmer" of the 1987 assortment, to the extent that he was still on some store shelves as late as 1990. *Developed at the suggestion of Stephen King's son, who was a G.I. Joe fan and wanted a magician on the team. Depending on how the story is told, either King or his son, Owen, created Crystal Ball and wrote the filecard.In reality, the character was created the usual way: Hasbro gave Larry Hama a sketch of the character and had him create a biography. However, Hama's version was not used, so it's possible the story is true. **Crystal Ball's biographical information is a parody of Owen King's own history. *His facial features and hair vaguely resemble horror actor Vincent Price. *Working names for the character included Trance-Master, Prof. Id, Mesmeron and The Gazer.ToyFare #145 *Before the figure was released as "Crystal Ball," there was another filecard for the character: External links Write up Footnotes Category:1987/Introductions Category:Cobra Category:A Real American Hero characters Category:Characters released once